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Cider

Real cider is fermented apple juice and nothing else. The juice is pressed, the sugars ferment out, and what is left is cider. No concentrate, no added water, no sugar put back to make up for what fermentation took away.

Much of what is sold as cider elsewhere starts from concentrate, reconstituted with water and sweetened afterwards. It is a different drink, made a different way, and it tastes like it.

Dry, medium and sweet describe how much apple sugar is left after fermentation, not how strong the cider is. A dry cider has had almost all of it converted, which is why it tastes sharper and of the fruit rather than of sweetness. Strength is a separate matter and is on the board beside each one.

Fruit ciders start from a cider base with real fruit added. They belong next to the others rather than apart from them, and they are still cider.

Our cider board runs in that order, driest at the top, so you can find your way along it from one end to the other.

  1. Orchard Dry pump clip Cornish Orchards — Duloe, Cornwall On now Orchard Dry 5.2% Crisp, fresh-pressed, no concentrate
  2. Rhubarb pump clip Snails Bank — Herefordshire On now Rhubarb 4%
  3. Devon Red pump clip Sandford Orchards — Crediton, Devon On now Devon Red 4.5% Medium, refreshing, 100% Devon apples
  4. Peach Melba pump clip Snails Bank — Herefordshire On now Peach Melba 4.0% Traditional cider base with real fruit
  5. Fruit Bat pump clip Snails Bank — Herefordshire On now Fruit Bat 4% Cider base with strawberry, raspberry and blackcurrant